It was December 23,1944.Obergefreiter Bastian Faust was marching through the great Ardennes forest that ran along the Belgian-Germany Border.The force he marched with was so large that the towns that had been previously occupied by the allies they had passed through were believing it to be the second Blitzkrieg, and were already hanging the flags of Nazi Germany outside of their houses. Without firing a shot the landscape they marched through changed to their control. However, Belgium would soon become the site of one of the largest battles in the history of the war, but not near the bloodiest. Across the Oder river the Red Army marched towards Berlin killing any and all Wehrmacht soldiers that were unlucky enough to be caught between them …show more content…
Bastian was all too familiar with this scenario except this time the force he marched with was small with only a handful of troops when compared to his original group. Not to mention there were no towns for them to stop at or people for them to talk to just a straight march.
This time it was Bastian who fired the first shot. When they became close to the allied line, the sky was dark and many were asleep in the camp. So, Bastian and his men left the panzers far enough away that those still awake could not hear them and then sneaked closer to the trenches. When he got close enough to clearly make out the back of an american soldier’s head, he quietly raised his rifle in the air, lowered it until it the sights were centered at the base of the man’s hair, and pulled the trigger.
As the shot rang in his ears the soldier’s body slumped forward, face smearing blood onto the soldier next to him, leaving him with an expression of sheer terror as over one-hundred-fifty wehrmacht soldiers charge from the trees toward the forward trenches and foxholes screaming ”Für das Vaterland!” . (for the
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“When will they arrive?”
“Any second-.” the operator began to say as a shell ripped through the air over their heads into the trench ahead of them.The panzers knocked trees out of their way as they advanced towards the allied defenses.
However, Hauptmann Saller opened the hatch on the top of the panzer’s turret and as he rose out of it was hit with several shots and collapsed over the side of the turret. He was not the only one to fall either. Oberfeldwebel Schöler was killed when he looked over the trench wall and a grenade exploded in front of him taking his entire upper body with it. Now that Schöler and Saller were dead, Bastian and Schwarz were left to command what was left of the three companies. What had once been near one-hundred-eighty men was now little more than fifty, as Bastian soon realized.
The panzers still hammered the forward trenches, but they could not see where the fire was truly coming from through the dust and
The initial airborne drops caught the Germans totally by surprise, and there was little resistance. MG Urquhart, later wrote that “ever since the first landing, General Bittrich commander of the II SS Panzer Corps and his staff had expected the British second lift.'' He also wrote that the Germans had provided early
Sherman tanks were to serve as shelter from the remaining German forces as the 1st Division made their way toshore. However, the tanks were prematurely released. None of the 29 tanks would make it to shore and the waters would become their graveyard. The
However, the Marines failed to scout the woods. As a consequence, they missed a regiment of German infantry dug in, with a network of machine gun nests and artillery.[7]
Early on the misty winter morning of Dec. 16, 1944, more than 200,000 German troops and nearly 1,000 tanks launched Adolf Hitler's last bid to reverse the flow out/decline/get worse fortunes that had begun when allied troops landed in France on D-Day. Trying to drive to the coast of the English Channel and split the allied armies as they had done in May 1940, the Germans struck in the Ardennes Forest, a 75-mile stretch of the front seen as dense woods and few roads, held by four inexperienced and fight-worn American divisions placed/assigned therefor rest and seasoning.
The Battle of the Bulge was a war in World War 2 that took place in the forest of Wallonia, Belgium and Oesling, Luxembourg. The war took place on December 16th, 1944 and ended January 25th, 1945. The attack was an offensive campaign by the Germans that caught the Allies off guard. The Germans barely used radio traffic and moved equipment and troops in the dark. The Germans brought 406,342 men, 1,214 tanks, tank destroyers, assault guns, and 4,224 artillery pieces while the allies only had 288,741 men, 483 tanks, 499 tank destroyers, 971 anti tank and artillery pieces. The Battle of the Bulge was one of the bloodiest attacks in World War 2 as thousands of both Allied and Axis soldiers died. The Battle of the Bulge was also called “Unternehmen
Even while waiting to board the ships to return home, the soldiers faced constant gun fire and shelling from the German Luftwaffe. Outnumbered, outgunned, outplanned, and nearly surrounded, escape seemed
It is uncertain who fired first, probably the British given several firsthand accounts but shots were exchanged with the Militia. The Battle lasted but a few moments killing and wounding several of the Militia and wounding one of the British Soldiers. The British then proceeded on to Concord to
There must be some curfew imposed, he believes, peeking out the alley as the soldiers walk past. Extremely nervous and at the mercy of destiny without a weapon to defend him, he whispers excitedly from the adrenaline, which is reaching levels far beyond the normal status quo? “How in the world did they pull this off,” The dark and clammy whether gives is the perfect backdrop as the soldiers transmit a fearful feeling that has captured the night. Seven of Germany’s best, seem like ordinary people just out on a patrol, he thinks, but their presence spells a lot more than trouble, it indicates
With great detail, artillery fortifications are constructed and large supplies of ammunition are stored. General Nivelle creates a new artillery technique known as the creeping barrage. Infantry men follows behind artillery fire that is leaping one-hundred forward each time. The French begin this method on Fort Douaumont and the Germans start being bombarded by the new French 400-mm gun. The Germans try and go onto the offensive with their artillery, only to give away their position and have seventy percent of their batteries taken out. The creeping barrage is a success and the Germans start to fall back. On October 24th the French have successfully taken back Fort Douaumont. The following day the attacks on Fort Vaux begin. Both sides suffer heavy casualties and the fighting comes to a halt. The Germans see no strategic value in trying to retain Fort Vaux so they evacuate it on November 2nd. With the momentum on their side, the French knew they had to keep going on the attack. The French start firing shell after shell onto the Germans and both sides suffer huge losses. The French finally make a break through though and recapture Bezonvaux, the Bois de Hassoule, the Bois de Chauffour and Louvemont. On December 19th the German Command realized that their own troops have given up and are not continuing the fight. The Germans have been pushed back to their original positions, thus bringing the Battle of Verdun to an
Sadly, their weapons did not have the ability to cut all the wire and destroy deep German trenches or knock out all enemy guns. It also could not provide a useful bombardment for the infantry attack. On July 1, the artillery drifted away from the German front trenches and left the infantry unattended. Nobody was
Over the village, the German soldiers notice THREE BLINDING LIGHTS. The soldiers shoot at the
The German High Command had to wait for the orders from Hitler to launch the attack. Hitler was waiting for the arrival of the new Panther and Tiger tanks to reinforce the army. This wait was at a cost however, because the Soviets were able to capture a German soldier who told the Soviets that the German attack was to be launched on the morning of July 5. The Soviets bombarded the Germans all through the night of the 4th, until an abrupt end at about 4:30 am. Field Marshal Walter Model’s 9th Panzer Army in the North and General Hermann Hoth’s 4th Panzer Army in the south, with support from three armoured divisions of Army Detachment Kempf, launched their attacks into the Soviet defenses. General Model’s armoured divisions made slow progress from the North to the South.
Meanwhile General Eisenhower sits in a chateau in Versailles, France. The fighting is predicted to end by New Year’s Eve, 1944. The Allies just hit a major turning point by taking the German city of Aachen. Right now Eisenhower should be celebrating this victory but instead he worries because he knows he will not hit the target date of winning the war by New Year’s Eve. The Allies are running out of supplies and are in a bit of a stalemate. The Germans however are gathering under radio silence. Bringing guns, tanks, and artillery into the woods of the Ardennes, the Germans prepare for a surprise
The Influence Religion and Society had on Literature, and Changes That Resulted from Their Influence in the 17th and 18th Centuries. Throughout history, literature has continued to change, and social norms and religious beliefs have heavily influenced the changes in different areas. During the Renaissance, religious leaders maintained unimaginable power over literature, dictating what was or was not appropriate for writers to release to the public. However, there were some dramatists, like Christopher Marlowe, who produced works, such as Doctor Faustus, that openly defied the Catholic Church.
The northern force led by Model pushed forward with his infantry forces leading the way followed and supported by his panzers and assault guns. His thought be hide this was to preserve his heavier panzers and tanks by letting the infantry take the brunt of the Russians defense so that way when the time came to break through his armor corps was strong. With his forces facing a heavily mined terrain it took time for the Germans to break through this area. All the while the Russians were launching their own counter-attacks to delay the Germans from pushing too far into the salient. Models force now fully engaged was in